The Rise in College Esports Scholarships

As the Esports industry matures, colleges are taking note, and treating Esports athletes like traditional athletes, offering programs and even Esports scholarships to entice the best to join their school, but further buy-in is still needed from college officials.

Several universities that now offer scholarships to gamers include Robert Morris University, who in 2014, became the first university to offer athletic scholarships to gamers. During that first year, Robert Morris gave out 35 Esports scholarships broken down into two tiers. The second tier covered 35% of tuition ($12,000), and the top tier doubled that. The University of Pikeville launched their program in the fall of 2015, followed by Maryville University, Southwestern University, Columbia College (2015), Garnes Vidaregaande Skule (Norway), and Arlanda Gymnasiet School (Sweden). In September of last year, University of California Irvine (UCI), became the first public university to offer a League of Legends Esports scholarship. In addition, UCI, with funding from iBUYPOWER and Riot, created a gaming arena to accompany its new Esports scholarship.

There is no denying that Esports is quickly on its way to becoming a permanent part of the world’s athletic culture, starting with colleges. Esports athletes are treated just like the other college athletes, and in a recent interview, traditional athletes at Robert Morris University expressed their joy at seeing their League of Legends team succeed, with several stating that the Esports players worked just as hard as athletes on the lacrosse, soccer, and football teams.

In addition to scholarships, Esports acceptance is starting to spread as hundreds of university gaming clubs begin to enter into competitions. There is a wide spectrum in the club space, and in levels of acceptance. Clubs can consist of groups of casual gamers who enter competitions for fun, or can include functioning teams with postgame analysis and pregame scouting. Similarly, some schools include faculty members that champion Esports, while others are resistant when it comes to accepting gaming as a sport. Robert Morris University and the University of California Irvine have advanced programs in place because a member of the University’s faculty was aware of the culture and successfully lobbied university officials to allow for scholarships and official teams, rather than just clubs.

When it comes to schools lacking buy-in from officials, the University of British Columbia is a prime example. Their club has won back to back uLoL titles, but it remains a club, rather than an official team. However, whether successful or not, establishing a culture will continue to gain importance as more and more applicants are passionate about Esports and see value in their university competing.

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